Hilltop, Georgia
Seal of Georgia
Hilltop · Pike County, Georgia
Population 251 (est. 2026: ~200)
Source: Census ACS 2023 · ACS 2023 + -11.55% annual growth projection

Hilltop, Georgia

Pike County, Georgia · Population 245

Hilltop is a small census-designated place tucked into Pike County in west-central Georgia, roughly equidistant between Macon and Atlanta. It sits just outside Zebulon, the Pike County seat, and functions less as an independent town than as a residential cluster within a rural county that has resisted the suburban sprawl pushing outward from the Atlanta metro. With 245 residents, Hilltop is small enough that most daily services — shopping, schools, medical care — require a drive. The landscape is quintessential Piedmont Georgia: rolling red clay hills, pine stands, and scattered farmland. Life here runs at a different pace than the suburbs one county over.

People & Demographics

The 2022 ACS counted 211 people in Hilltop across 65 households. Median age is 43.2 years — noticeably older than Georgia's statewide median, which reflects the pattern common to small rural CDPs where younger residents leave for employment centers. Average household size sits at 3.25 people, which is high relative to the state average and suggests multigenerational or extended family living arrangements are common.

The racial composition is roughly evenly split: 114 residents identified as white and 97 as Black. No Asian or Hispanic residents were recorded in the 2022 ACS sample. There are 58 children under 18, representing about 27% of the population.

Pike County as a whole holds 18,889 people, meaning Hilltop accounts for just over 1% of the county's total population.

Economy & Employment

The economic picture in Hilltop is strained. Per capita income is $13,522 — well below Georgia's statewide per capita income, which runs above $34,000. The median household income figure was not reportable in the 2022 ACS for this small of a sample, but the per capita number and poverty data tell the story clearly: 26 residents fall below the federal poverty line, representing roughly 12% of the ACS-counted population.

Of 109 residents counted in the labor force, 11 were unemployed at the time of the survey — an unemployment rate near 10%. Most workers commute out; Hilltop itself has no employment base to speak of.

Housing

Hilltop has 99 total housing units, of which 65 are occupied. That leaves 34 vacant — a vacancy rate of about 34%, which is high by any measure and typical of rural CDPs where population has slowly contracted over decades. Of occupied units, 49 are owner-occupied and 16 are renter-occupied, giving an ownership rate near 75%.

Median home value and median rent figures were not reportable in the 2022 ACS for this location. Given the per capita income levels, housing costs are almost certainly modest relative to the Atlanta metro but remain a real burden for lower-income households.

Schools

Hilltop children attend Pike County Schools, which serves the entire county from Zebulon. The district operates four main schools plus an alternative program:

All schools are in Zebulon, requiring bus transportation for Hilltop students. The district is county-unified, so there is no separate Hilltop school district.

Getting Around

Hilltop is car country. Of 98 workers counted in the commute data, 86 drove alone and 12 carpooled. Zero workers used public transit, walked, or worked from home. There is no public transit serving this area.

Aggregate commute time for those 98 workers totals 2,560 minutes, implying an average one-way commute of roughly 26 minutes. Most employment destinations are likely Zebulon, Griffin (Spalding County), or the southern Atlanta suburbs.

Healthcare

No hospitals or clinical providers were found within Hilltop itself. The nearest significant medical facilities are in Griffin, roughly 20 miles north, where Piedmont Henry and Wellstar facilities serve the region. For provider searches specific to Hilltop and surrounding Pike County, the CMS National Provider Registry can be queried directly: NPI Registry — Hilltop, GA.

Library

The J. Joel Edwards Public Library serves Pike County residents and is located approximately 0.4 miles from Hilltop — essentially walkable, which is notable given how few services are within that range. Phone: (770) 567-2014. It is part of the Flint River Regional Library System.

Parks & Recreation

Two significant National Park Service sites are within reasonable driving distance:

Neither is a day-trip afterthought — both are full destinations worth the drive.

Natural Hazards

Pike County has a substantial FEMA disaster declaration history, which reflects Georgia's exposure to a wide range of weather and climate events. Declarations affecting this county since 1998:

The pattern is clear: Pike County faces risk from tropical systems tracking inland, winter ice storms (which hit central Georgia harder than most people expect), and severe convective weather including tornadoes. Hurricane Helene's 2024 declarations underscore that inland communities are not protected from major hurricane impacts — wind and flooding reach well past the coast.

Government & Municipal Code

Hilltop is a CDP (census-designated place), not an incorporated municipality, which limits formal local governance structures. A municipal code is published through Municode: Hilltop CDP, Georgia — Municode Library.

No local building code is in effect for Hilltop. Construction and land use would fall under Pike County jurisdiction.

Weather

Current forecasts and alerts for Hilltop:

The nearest weather observation station is Zebulon 0.1 WNW, approximately 1.0 mile away. Central Georgia sees hot, humid summers, occasional severe thunderstorm outbreaks in spring, and ice storm risk in winter that can shut down roads with little warning.

References

The law belongs to the people. Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 590 U.S. (2020)